Dixon Firefighter of the Year Brian Schroder described as reliable, dependable, consistent

That was the case for Engineer Brian Schroeder who, after more than 20 years with the Dixon Fire Department, got the nod for Firefighter of the Year at the department's annual awards dinner in March.

A lifelong Dixon resident, Schroeder was selected by a panel of his peers because of the "Consistent, reliable, and dependable," work behind the scenes that Fire Chief Aaron McAlister says make him a credit to both the department and the community as a whole.

"I was shocked," Schroeder said during his shift Friday as he recalled the ceremony. "I had no clue at all, it caught me totally off-guard."

"There are so many people here that stand out just as much as I do, that's what caught me by surprise," he added.

Schroeder, 42, has been with the department since joining as a volunteer in 1990, he said.

Out of high school and with little idea of what he wanted to do, Schroeder joined the department while splitting his time working as a mechanic for a local trucking company and attending community college -- a role that help prep him for his work with the fire department.

"I've just always had a love for maintenance and that type of stuff and working on things," he said. "I like to try to fix things when they're broken."

He was hired part time in 1993 and was hired on full time about three years later, he said.

He was later promoted and has held the position of engineer for the past 15 years.

In addition to his daily duties, Schroeder is also in charge of the department's records management system for incident reporting and serves on the apparatus specification committee, for when the department buys new equipment.

In addition to the camaraderie within the fire house, which he refers to as a "family atmosphere," Schroeder said he also loves the variety his career affords him.

"It's something different every day, it's not the same thing," he explained. "You never know what you're going to get into when the alarm goes off."

Schroeder also loves "the ability to help people and all the different aspects of the fire service. It's not just putting out fires, you know, it's the medical aids, the rescues, things like that," he said.

Over the years, Schroeder has seen the growth of the department first hand, especially in terms of improvements to fire equipment and staffing numbers -- up from two 24-hour firefighters, when he first started, to six each day.

"I really have no desire to leave. I love the community and love the department and being involved with the growth of it, you sort of don't want to leave it," he said.

In addition to being Dixon-born-and-raised, Schroeder and his wife, Beth, are raising their two children in Dixon -- Kate, 11, and Wade, 8.

"The fun ages," he added, with a laugh.

Schroeder was certified as a fire officer through the Office of the California State Fire Marshal, and has attended many specialized trainings.

"There's always something new to learn," he said.

Described as "always being there for the department," McAlister said Schroeder is constantly working on multiple projects, raging from vehicle maintenance and incident reporting software to departmental IT problems.

"He is one of the rocks who makes up our foundation," McAlister wrote in a press release. "Everything he does is done to the best of his ability, which is huge."

A friend to all, Schroeder continually works to better relationships within the department between labor and management, McAlister said, adding that he "stands heads above most when it comes to work ethic, integrity, pride and professionalism."